Monday, March 22, 2010

Penn State 'victim' lied about rape

University Park, Pa. -- Penn State University Police report that a recent victim's account of an alleged rape on the north side of the Lubert Building turned out to be false. After a thorough investigation and further interviews with the victim, University Police determined that the March 1 incident did not occur.

"Our preliminary investigation turned up no evidence that a crime had occurred. As the investigation progressed, the victim admitted to investigators that the incident did not happen as it was initially described," said Steve Shelow, Director of University Police. "Sexual assaults and rapes committed by strangers are unusual occurrences in our community and we can all take comfort in the fact that this particular incident did not take place."

After learning of the alleged incident on March 1, the University immediately sent out an advisory to the community, asking for help in solving the reported crime and urging community members to use caution.

"Our primary focus is always on the safety of our community members,” Shelow said. "While the details of this incident differ from those originally reported, this does not diminish the seriousness of the crime of rape. Sexual assault and rape affects the safety and trust of all of our community members and Penn State is committed to responding quickly and effectively to all reports of this type."